Peter Kotarowski spends hours each day preparing sausages of all types at Morscher's Pork Store in Ridgewood, Queens.

Kotarowski has spent the past 22 years of his life at Morscher's. He co-owns the store with Herbert Morscher, who the customers know as Herbie.

What You Need To Know

  • Morscher's Pork Store in Ridgewood, Queens is scheduled to close Feb. 3 after nearly 70 years in business 

  • The store specializes in homemade meat products like sausages
  • The store opened in 1955, catering to the once heavily German neighborhood 

  • Owners said the store is closing due to a rent dispute with their landlord, who is also a partner in the business

The store is set to close on Feb. 3 after almost 70 years in business, due to a rent dispute with the landlord, who is also a partner in the business. The shop was opened in 1955 by Herbie's relative Joseph "Pepi" Morscher.

In 1981, Herbie’s dad, also named Herbert, became an owner, and Herbie started working there while in high school.

The store first catered to the heavily German neighborhood with old world recipes for homemade meat products, and then adjusted as people from different eastern and central European countries moved in over the years.

“We always changed gears to fit the people of the neighborhood, so they could come into the store and have a piece of home just for the moment they were here,” Morscher said.

Longtime customers have been stopping in to say goodbye since they heard the news. Andrew Bronstein comes to the store every week to buy sausages to serve at his store, Nemo’s Beer Shop, in Forest Hills.

“It’s part of the community fabric, part of the history and it’s a sad day for the neighborhood,” Bronstein said.

These days, customers are filling the shop to stock up on items they have been buying for years, bringing back fond memories of family meals and holidays. Paulette Sherlock was purchasing an array of items to freeze for a later date.

“It’s so sad, it’s like I got punched in the gut when I found out it was closing, like what do we do now, because you just don’t find this anymore,” Sherlock said.

If you visit the shop during their final days, there will be plenty of hugs, and some tears. Longtime customer Joe Howell embraced Herbie after making his purchases. As he walked away, Herbie told him, “This ship is taking on water, but I’m going down with the ship,” Morscher said.

In this case, a last vestige of days gone by that still had some fuel in the tank, but was stopped short by circumstance.